THE ANDY WARHOL FOUNDATION PREVAILS IN “PRINCE” COPYRIGHT LAWSUIT

THE ANDY WARHOL FOUNDATION PREVAILS IN “PRINCE” COPYRIGHT LAWSUIT

By PPLAdmin / July 12, 2019

On July 1, 2019, U.S. District Court Judge of the Southern District of New York, John G. Koeltl, held that an Andy Warhol series of prints featuring legendary pop artist, Prince, does not infringe upon the copyright of the photographer who originally took the photograph. Judge Koeltl ruled that the Warhol series is “transformative” of…

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COLOR ME BADD STILL TOURING DESPITE CONTINUED CONFLICTS, INCLUDING TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT CLAIMS BETWEEN ITS OWN MEMBERS

By PPLAdmin / July 11, 2019

On July 1, 2019, a member of well-known ‘90s R&B group, Color Me Badd, filed a lawsuit in Indiana federal court against another member alleging he misappropriated the band’s trademark while trying to pursue his solo career. CMB Entertainment LLC (“CMB”) and lead singer of Color Me Badd, Bryan Abrams (“Abrams”), are seeking to stop…

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COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT CLAIM AGAINST MILEY CYRUS WILL HAVE ITS DAY IN COURT

By PPLAdmin / July 10, 2019

Following up on our February 25, 2019, article entitled “Miley Cyrus Will Face Lawsuit Over Copyright Infringement Claims Over ‘We Can’t Stop’”: On June 28, 2019, U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of New York, Lewis Kaplan, ruled that copyright infringement claims against Miley Cyrus over her 2013 hit song “We Can’t Stop” will…

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“EMPIRE” COPYRIGHT CASE AGAINST FOX REJECTED BY U.S. DISTRICT COURT FOR THIRD TIME AFTER THE 9TH CIRCUIT REVERSED A PREVIOUS DECISION FOR DEFENDANT FOX

By PPLAdmin / July 8, 2019

Following up on our August 8, 2018 article entitled “Ninth Circuit Revives Lawsuit Against Fox Regarding ‘Empire’”: On June 14, 2019, U.S. District Judge of the Central District of California, Percy Anderson, again tossed the lawsuit against Fox Television which claimed that plaintiffs’ unproduced “treatment” was the basis of the television show “Empire.” This recent…

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AUTHOR OF TOMMY DEVITO AUTOBIOGRAPHY WANTS NINTH CIRCUIT TO RE-INSTATE JURY VERDICT IN HER FAVOR

By PPLAdmin / June 29, 2019

On June 11, 2019, author Donna Corbello (“Corbello”) urged the Ninth Circuit to revive a jury verdict finding the creators of the hit Broadway musical “Jersey Boys” stole material from her husband’s unpublished book. Even though the jury found in her favor and issued her an award in June of 2017, the judge thereafter issued…

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NINTH CIRCUIT TO TAKE A SECOND LOOK AT ITS RULING CONCERNING THE CASE AGAINST LED ZEPPELIN

By PPLAdmin / June 29, 2019

On June 10, 2019, the Ninth Circuit decided that all of the judges of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals would “rehear” the previous panel’s decision reversing a lower court verdict in favor of Led Zeppelin. The lawsuit was originally filed in 2014 by Michael Skidmore (“Skidmore”), the trustee for the lead singer of a…

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PEPE THE FROG CREATOR AND INFOWARS REACH SETTLEMENT

By PPLAdmin / June 22, 2019

Following up on our March 15, 2018 article entitled “Pepe The Frog Creator Fires Back”: On June 10, 2019, the creator of Pepe the Frog, Matt Furie (“Furie”), reached a settlement to end a copyright lawsuit he filed against the far-right website, “Infowars.” A month after U.S. District Court Judge, Michael Fitzgerald, of the Central…

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PHILADELPHIA ATTORNEY WHO THOUGHT HE WAS “OFF THE RECORD” CANNOT STOP DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKERS FROM INCLUDING THE FOOTAGE

By PPLAdmin / June 21, 2019

On June 11, 2019, U.S. District Court Judge, Gerald McHugh, of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granted documentary filmmakers summary judgment holding that prominent Philadelphia attorney, A. Charles Peruto (“Peruto”), did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy when he was caught on tape criticizing city Judge Genece Brinkley. Peruto was looking to block critical…

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HOUSTON SCHOOL DISTRICT REQUIRED TO PAY $9 MILLION AFTER LOSING COPYRIGHT LAWSUIT OVER LEARNING MATERIALS

By PPLAdmin / June 14, 2019

On May 24, 2019, after a seven-day trial, a Texas federal jury ordered the Houston Independent School District (“District”) to pay $9.2 million to an educational publishing company, DynaStudy, Inc. (“DynaStudy”), after finding its employees willfully infringed the company’s rights. The verdict comes just approximately three years to the date since the lawsuit was filed…

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COURT FINDS USE OF “SUPERBOWL SHUFFLE” IN DOCUMENTARY WAS “FAIR USE”

By PPLAdmin / June 13, 2019

Following up on our December 13, 2018 article entitled “Claim Filed On Behalf of Writers of Song ‘Super Bowl Shuffle’”: On May 30, 2019, U.S. District Judge of the Northern District of Illinois, Virginia M. Kendall, ruled that the owners of the “Super Bowl Shuffle”- a song made famous by the 1985 Chicago Bears (the…

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